It's been a long time since Aaron Judge looked like Aaron Judge in the postseason.
His last dominant playoff series was in 2018, when Judge posted a 1.194 OPS in a loss to the Red Sox.
And Judge's most recent postseason series ended with a disastrous 1-for-16 loss in the 2022 ALCS vs. Houston following a record-breaking home run season.
Judge has a chance to reiterate his intention to return to the playoffs, which begin Saturday with the Yankees opening in the Bronx and the ALDS vs. Kansas City.
The Royals won just 86 games en route to a wild-card spot and are missing star players beyond Bobby Witt Jr. and Sal Perez, but after another MVP-caliber season, it's another tough one for Judge. It can be a challenge.
First up will be right-hander Michael Wacha, who is scheduled to start in Game 1. The 33-year-old has probably handled the judges better than anyone else in the league.
Judge has just one hit, three walks and 11 strikeouts in 18 at-bats against Wacha in his career.
His OPS of .246 against Wacha is Judge's lowest against a pitcher he has faced at least 16 times.
“I'm still going to take a chance,” Aaron Boone said Thursday on a Zoom call from the stadium when asked about Judge's struggles against Wacha. “Let's boil it down to a small sample: I'll take Aaron Judge against anyone any day.”
The Yankees will need a lot of points from the Judges for a team that hasn't scored more than five points in a playoff game in 15 games since Game 1 of the 2020 ALDS against the Rays.
Wacha, a veteran, has plenty of postseason experience and was active in most of the Cardinals' playoff run in 2013 before losing in Game 6.
Since that start, Wacha has appeared in four postseason games, allowing 19 earned runs and six home runs in just 11 innings. Wacha hasn't faced the Yankees since May 2023, when Judge went 1-for-4 at bat.
To make matters worse for Judge and the team, Seth Lugo, who is scheduled to start later in the series, most likely Game 3, has held Judge to eight no-hitters and three strikeouts in his career.
But the Yankees aren't that interested in those numbers, not after watching Judge hit 58 home runs and evolve into an even better hitter than he was when he hit 62 home runs in 2022.
Judge ended the season with a home run in five consecutive games, and in the final game of the season on September 28, he struck out five innings for the first time this year.
Hitting coach James Rowson said Judge is in a “great spot” at the plate.
“Of course, anyone [can have] There were some tough days in this game, but his season speaks for itself,” Rowson said. “What he's been able to do this year is probably something we've never seen from a right-handed hitter in the history of the game. I love where he's at.”
Lawson added of Judge: “He's been motivated since day one. He's looking forward to the postseason and anyone who knows Judge knows he's focused on the day, but he's got a goal in mind. The goal is to win the World Series. I think this will be a solid postseason for him and I'm really looking forward to seeing what he can do.”
Brian Cashman called Judge's performance “superhuman,” and the slugger and the rest of the team are poised to solidify his accomplishments.
“Let's hope that he, his crew and all of us are ultimately in a position to add another world championship to his resume,” Cashman said. “That's something he and we haven't achieved together yet. Hopefully in 2024 we can finally get back to that pinnacle. We'll see.”
